What Could Have BeenAnd What Might Be
by Ixidor Alucard
Summary: With the help of his friends, Squall is searching desperately for a way to make Rinoa come out of her coma, but a new threat from an unexpected enemy takes him on another adventure, to save all of Garden itself, and he learns nothing is what it seems
1. Chapter 1: Morning

Before we begin, I want to say that I don't own FFVIII or anything. Also, this is my first fanfic, so I would appreciate reviews and feedback on what you think of it, and how I could improve my writing. Just to clarify, this story takes place around the beginning of Disk 3, after Edea is defeated but before the battle with Ultimecia

And now, the story begins...

Chapter 1

Squall crouched through the lush foliage, searching for an adversary. He had to be careful though; he didn't want to run into something too powerful like a T-Rexaur, especially since he was alone. He spied a Grat standing between him and freedom. _Well, might as well get out of here, _he thought to himself. After all, it _had_ been a good workout. He rushed out of his hiding spot, and before the monster had a chance to react, he had already cut it down with his Gunblade. He ran through the doors of the Training Room, not stopping until he was already safe and sound in his dorm room.

Squall Leonhart threw himself onto his bed, panting heavily. _Got to do better next time…_thought Squall angrily. He knew letting Zell borrow his GF's, moments before his training sessions, wasn't a good idea. Of course, neither was lending Selphie most of his potions. Couldn't they understand he just wanted to be left alone? He was tired of everyone always pestering him…he didn't feel like doing anything anymore. It's not like he ever chose to become leader of Balamb Garden. He never chose to fight the sorceress. All these things had been _forced_ upon him. What if he chose not to do any of it? What if he quit? But even he knew the answers to these questions as soon as he had thought of them. He would never leave Garden; it had always been his home, maybe his only one. It's where all his friends (he cringed at the thought of it; he didn't want any friends) were, and would stay, as long as it took to finally defeat the sorceress. As Squall's stomach grumbled, he realized he hadn't eaten today. As he made his way to the cafeteria, he decided it was all for the best; he was thinking too much anyway.

Of course, his solitude couldn't last; he had barely started to walk towards the cafeteria when he heard a voice yell, "Yo, Squall! Wait up!" Squall groaned; of all the people that he could have run into, why, _why..._"Hey Squall, how's it going?" asked Zell Dincht. "Fine." answered Squall, avoiding eye contact. After all, maybe Zell would leave him alone if he acted like he wasn't very interested in what he had to say. It was a feeble hope; he knew Zell better than that. "Hey, thanks for lending me your GF's man, they helped a lot." exclaimed Zell, "Here you go!" As the power of his Guardian Forces returned to him, Squall couldn't help but feel better, more...complete. "Thanks." said Squall as they reached the cafeteria, and he got in line. "Hey, I'll stick with you, I haven't eaten lunch either." said Zell. Squall had to stop himself from strangling Zell right there. He had to eat with him too? This day was getting better and better...

As they sat down, Zell started babbling on about how unfair it was he never got to eat the hot dogs...Squall found it amusing how Zell always found a way to be in line to see the person who got the last hot dog, but never getting it himself. Then he started talking about some test he had taken, and how he thought he did. Tests seemed so...childish now. Didn't Zell realize they had a much bigger test ahead of them? Maybe it was his way of dealing with it...although Zell was (he hated to admit it) his best friend, they were complete opposites. "And then I decided that's the last time I would try to teach a chocobo to sing...So anyway, what's everyone else up to?" asked Zell. "Huh?" Squall came out of his thoughts. "Oh yeah, I think Quistis was going over some battle plans with Xu...and who knows what Selphie and Irvine are up to." Zell looked shocked. "NO WAY!! Selphie and Irvine..?" "Who knows?" replied Squall. He wasn't going to get involved anyway; what his teammates do is none of his business. It annoyed him how Zell seemed so shocked though, only an idiot couldn't be able to see that Selphie and Irvine were going to end up together. "So, uh...have you been to the hospital wing today? I was going to go visit Rinoa, but..." _Rinoa..._he had tried to not think about her, thinking by putting her in the back of his mind and by throwing himself into the Training Room constantly, he could be able to forget about her, even for a moment, forget about the pain.


	2. Chapter 2: Remembrance

Chapter 2

The truth was, Rinoa was probably never going to open her eyes again. She had been in a coma since they had fought Sorceress Edea at Galbadia Garden, and no one had any idea what had caused it. Not even Sorceress Edea could help; after the battle, she went back to her old self, the one Squall and his friends had come to love as children long ago. However, she had no idea what was wrong with Rinoa, and everyone had mourned our fallen comrade, as though she were dead. The thought of her alone in the hospital wing was too much for Squall. "Got to go…" he mumbled as he ran out of the cafeteria. He ignored all the people who greeted him in the hall, thinking only of her. There had to be a way for her to come back, right? She wasn't dead, no matter what anyone else thought. As long as there was a chance...he burst into the small room, and nearly tripped. As he walked in, Doctor Kadowaki greeted him. "Can I see her?" asked Squall breathlessly. "Go ahead, just take it easy though," said Dr. Kadowaki, "The way you came in here, I thought you were going to need a bed here, too." Squall opened the door to Rinoa's room. He couldn't help but notice how small it was; just one chair and a nightstand beside her bed. As he looked at her, a wave of guilt and anguish washed over him. If only he had protected her. If only he had been a better fighter. If only...if only...Squall sat down beside her. He stroked her hair. "Rinoa, I wish I told you..." _Told her what?_ A voice in his mind asked. _Told her how much she meant to you? Told her that, despite all your efforts, you learned to care about her? Told her that you were sorry you never once expressed your feelings, the way she tried to do for you? _

_Told her you loved her?_

_What do you wish you told her, Squall Lionheart?_

"Rinoa..." he whispered in her ear, hoping she could hear him, "Please wake up...please..." His eyes closed and his world went black.

_This feeling...it seems all too familiar..._

_"So what are we going to do about this, Mr. Almasy?" asked a voice. Another voice replied, this one younger and with considerably more fear in it. "Kill him? No, Squall Leonhart must live to carry out my plan...besides, I couldn't even count on you to eliminate the sorceress..." "I would have!" Seifer said, with a tinge of bitterness, "But Squall and his friends came..." "Silence!" said the voice furiously, "You have done nothing but deliver false promises and pathetic excuses! You promised me the death of the sorceress! When you failed at that, you promised me you would kill the President of Galbadia! Yet you did not, and instead fought Squall Leonhart and his allies, the few people I need alive for this plan to succeed!" _Squall could see Seifer's pale face in the darkness. He tried to look over at the other man, but the man's face was impossible to see. _"What do you need Squall for anyway?" asked Seifer. "There is no need for you to know that. Just know that Squall is indispensible right now. However, once my plan is put into action, Garden, along with its leader, will burn to the ground." Seifer looked up. "Yes, I know how much you looked foward to your 'SeeD Hunt'. This will be your chance. The death of Garden, I will leave entirely up to you. But do not fail me again!" Seifer smiled, bowed, and left the room_.

Squall woke up with a start. He took in his surroundings. His first observation was that he had been holding Rinoa's hand. He realized how cold it was, but the cruel fact only made him hold it tighter, as a tear fell from his face.


	3. Chapter 3: Dreamer

What Could Have Been…And What Might Be

Chapter 3

Squall looked out of the door to the hospital wing. Making sure no one was around, he sprinted down the hall to his dorm. After locking the door and closing the windows, he sat down on his bed (which was way to small, he thought, he was going to talk to Xu about that later). Squall was shocked at what he had seen. But what _had_ he seen? Maybe he just dozed off, and it was only a dream? But no, it felt too real for that, it was too much like the "Dreamworld" he had experienced...

That was another thing, usually in the dreamworld he was Laguna Loire, a Galbadian soldier, but this time he had been the man in the room, the madman that wanted to destroy his home. But that part didn't matter. What mattered is that this unknown enemy, with the help of Seifer, was going to do something that would destroy Garden. Squall had to find out what was going on and why...

One of the greatest joys in Quistis Trepe's life was teaching. Nothing made her feel more content than entering the classroom at the beginning of the day. However, lately she had only been deprived of that feeling. She had been "promoted", and now her life was devoted to battling. Planning battle strategies, training with Squall and the others...she would really rather be teaching. But what she wanted didn't matter. She had been chosen. She knew she had a higher purpose than teaching, and that was to fight alongside her friends and defeat the sorceress. As she and Xu went over the new defense procedure plans, she couldn't help but wonder what Squall was up to. They were fast approaching one of, if not the most significant battle of their lives. Shouldn't they be working together? She barely had time to think this when Squall and Zell came. "Quistis, we need to talk." said Squall. Quistis raised an eyebrow. Squall sounded...nervous. Zell shifted around uneasily. Whatever it was, it was serious.

Squall always hated having others involved in his problems. But this new threat, whatever it was, was something he couldn't handle alone. But now he wouldn't have to. Rinoa had taught him that. Putting her out of his mind, he explained the situation to Quistis. He had to hand it to her, Quistis could hide her feelings well. He admired that quality. She never interrupted, she let him tell his story. Very different from Zell; He had totally flown off the handle..."So, are you with us, Quistis?" She shifted in her seat. "What do you guys plan to do?" she asked him. "I'm not sure", replied Squall, "I think we should pay Ellone a visit; after all she's the one that sends us to the Dreamworld..." "Then what?!" Quistis yelled out, "Squall, think this through for a second. You don't have a plan. You're just going to go try your chances, when everyone needs you HERE, at Garden! You're our leader, you can't just up and leave!" She stopped for a second, flustered. She wasn't used to outbursts like that, in fact, the last time that had happened had been with..."Quistis, what would you have me do?" said Squall quietly, "Garden is my home. If someone is threatening it, I'll do everything I can to stop them. I could care less about being the Garden's leader." "Squall, I think it's great that you want to protect Garden so badly, but are you so sure that you might not be doing all this for another reason?" Quistis asked. Squall blinked. "What do you mean?" "Well..." Quistis chose her words carefully, "Maybe you're doing all this because you feel bad about what's happened to Rinoa? You had the dream while you were visiting her, and.." She didn't get to finish her sentence; Squall got up and slammed the door behind him.

Maybe Quistis had a point. But Squall wasn't about to admit it. He knew whatever as coming was coming soon, and he knew (he hated admitting it) that he needed all of his friends to stop it. But Rinoa was in a coma...Irvine and Selphie had been called away on a mission to Esthar...Quistis didn't want to help him...it seemed he would only be getting help from Zell. He couldn't help thinking they were all doomed...

_He was in a long, dark room. As he tapped on the desk impatiently, he felt a slight sense of...something. Remorse? No...not now, he was too far in this too start getting cold feet. "Sir?" Seifer Almasy walked in. "Ah, excellent. I wanted to tell you that your capture of Irvine Kinneas went flawlessly, and for that I congratulate you." Seifer started to thank him, but the man raised a hand and Seifer fell silent. "However, you allowed Selphie Tilmitt and Ixidor Alucard to escape, and if they make it back to Garden, our entire plan is compromised, and everything we have worked for will be for naught." He pressed a button on a control panel, and a hidden door slid open. The door revealed Raijin and Fujin, pushed out of the door by two Esthar soldiers, guns pointed at their heads. "I have let your many mistakes slide up until now. But this latest blunder can't and won't be overlooked. So find and kill the two SeeDs, or you will suffer much more." The man nodded to the soldier that was holding Raijin, and the soldier took aim...as darkness surrounded everything, Squall heard a shot ring out and Seifer howling into the night.  
_

AN: third chapter's done, the 4th should be coming out soon. Self-insertion, anyone? Ixidor shouldn't last long though; he's probably not as skilled as Selphie. What do you guys think? Would appreciate any reviews since this my first fanfic and I want to improve my writing


	4. Chapter 4: Insanity and Realization

A/N: Thinking of new ideas, taking the story in a new direction and reading a lot of other people's fanfics to see what my writing is missing. Not sure I've found it yet, but I'm trying, so as always, I don't own FF8 and comments and criticisms are appreciated, I'm still pretty new to writing fanfics and stuff.

Chapter 4

Squall woke up with a start, and realized he had been sweating profusely. Getting up from his bed, he changed into his black jacket and pants and walked out into the hall, disturbed by the images he just seen. He knew now he wasn't dreaming; the time had come to take action. He made his way to the third floor of the Garden. As the elevator doors slid open, he couldn't help but feel a sense of foreboding. What if his friends chose not to believe him? As much as he hated to admit it, he didn't look foward to meeting whatever this new enemy was alone. He scowled as the lift to the Garden's cockpit whirred and clicked, taking him up. He nodded at Nida and Xu; he couldn't help but feel sorry for them, hanging out in the Garden cockpit all the time must get boring...He looked around. "Where's Quistis?" he asked. Nida and Xu shared an uneasy glance. "She didn't tell you?" asked Xu. Squall frowned and shrugged, and Xu sighed, as if steeling herself up for something.

"Selphie's come back to Garden."

Interesting how those five words had unsettled Squall so much. As he ran to the hospital wing, his thoughts were swimming in his head. He had seen this coming the night before...if only he had seen it sooner...He burst into the hospital wing, where Zell, Quistis, and Doctor Kadowaki were all talking in hushed tones. They looked up, startled, and Squall asked them what had happened. "It's Selphie...she's taken a lot of injuries, and her brain has been damaged beyond repair. We can't even understand what she's saying." Quistis looked away as Doctor Kadowaki told Squall he should see for himself, and she gestured to one of the rooms. Squall only nodded and moved to open the door when Zell stopped him and said, "Don't, just...look in the window." Squall maintained his calm, and looked through the small window in the white door.

What he saw was Selphie, but it wasn't Selphie anymore. Her yellow dress had been torn into rags, and she paced the room, muttering inaudible words. Her brown hair was matted down, unkempt, as though she had never heard of a comb in her life. Her bright, vibrant attitude was gone. She looked wildly around the room, like a caged animal. Her bright-green eyes had lost their cheerful twinkle...instead Squall could only see fear. She no longer seemed like Selphie, she seemed hollow and empty inside..."Hyne..." he said under his breath as he tore his eyes away from the shocking sight. "We assume that she was attacked on the way back here, she couldn't have been more than a few miles from here, as she called in from Balamb Train Station to report that they were on their way back," said Doctor Kadowaki softly, "In her report was that Irvine had been captured at Esthar, and that she would be coming back to Garden alone." Squall looked away...but a thought occurred to him. "There were 3 members on that mission," he said, "What happened to the other?" Doctor Kadowaki hung her head in what appeared to be shame. "Ixidor Alucard? He died of his wounds minutes after they arrived. He had time to explain to us what had happened: The poor boy had sustained heavy damage from whoever attacked the team, and after the battle, he had to carry Selphie back to Garden against her will. It was a sight; Ixidor stumbled in, carrying Selphie, who was screaming and scratching him. A few students helped drag Selphie and Ixidor here, and they had to lock Selphie in that room to prevent her from attacking anyone. His injuries coupled with the strain of dragging Selphie back to Garden was too much for him." Squall listened to the story with a tinge of sadness; although he had never known Ixidor, he was a SeeD, and it seemed like he had been a good one. "Did he say anything else?" Squall asked. "He told us to listen to what Selphie had to say. But she's impossible to talk to now and almost nothing she says makes sense. These are the only words we've been able to get from her." She passed a clipboard on her desk to Squall, and he looked at it: Sorceress. Squall. Dream. Irvine. _Well, the word Irvine makes sense, _he thought, _but I don't get the connection between the others. _He passed the clipboard back to Doctor Kadowaki without a word. He thought for a moment. Something about this story didn't make sense...

"Quistis, Zell, come with me." They didn't object, and they got up out of their chairs and walked out with him. As they walked, he told them about the dream he had had, and how he was going to go on a journey to find out what it meant. He turned to face them. "Are you coming with me?" Zell and Quistis looked at each other. Quistis smiled and said,

"Of course we are Squall, did you really think otherwise?"

_This office was different than the one before. This one was small, and the walls were made of wood. Something Squall hadn't seen often; such houses weren't built anymore, except maybe in Winhill. The mahagony brown walls and the crackling fireplace made the office seem less forboding than the one before. In fact, the only reason Squall knew it was an office was because of the desk littered with papers. But he wasn't Squall anymore, he thought as he looked through the man's eyes. He looked down at all the papers...a diagram of a dragon-shaped spaceship, Lunar Space Station clearance papers...he hated paperwork, it was so boring, he would rather be out fighting. Seifer had better be here soon, he had another meeting soon, and this one was slightly more important...he looked up at the sound of the door opening, to reveal the pale-faced teenager with the scar on his face. "Sir, I'm ready to report on the mission you sent me on." Seifer walked in, his white trenchcoat billowing behind him. The man merely nodded, and Seifer began, "Although the targets escaped us, we were somewhat successful in our objective. Our source in Garden tells us that Ixidor Alucard, the SeeD traveling with Selphie Tilmitt, died of his wounds. Selphie herself survived the attack, but she sustained significant head truama, which drove her insane." The man scowled. "You stand there and tell me that you were successful when they slipped through your fingers?!" "Sir, Ixidor Alucard said nothing!" Seifer said defensively, "Our source assures us that no one except her heard his story, and no one knows who attacked him! And as for Selphie Tilmitt, our source tells us that she's incapable of stringing two words together!" The man calmed down, and sighed heavily. "I can't punish you; you were lucky this time, Seifer, that your objective was accomplished despite your dismal performance. Ixidor Alucard dead, Selphie Tilmitt driven insane...it seems the only the knows of out plan now is Squall Leonhart." Seifer looked up, shock etched his face. "Squall, sir?" "Yes, one of the few people that could destroy my plans is aware, and I assume he plans to stop us," the man said, trying to keep the anger out of his voice, "but he will not succeed!" "But, I don't understand, sir, how could Squall know of our plans?" asked Seifer. The man looked at a confused Seifer._

_"Seifer, have you ever heard of someone named Ellone?"_

Well, that's chapter 4, chapter 5 coming soon, now that I got past my self-induced writer's block the plot should unfold pretty quickly, I think. Tell me what you guys think, I appreciate any advice you might have.


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